Mike Conners spends Republican money for a family vacation

From the Albany Times-Union
Section: Capital Region
Page: B2
Date: Friday, February 4, 2005

`People's watchdog' bills GOP for post-election family trip

Inside Politics asks: Who's watching the "people's watchdog"?

We're referring, of course, to Albany County Comptroller Mike Conners , who has adopted that moniker on his Web site. Conners' latest financial report, filed with the state Board of Elections in January, includes an unusual expenditure.

The "Conners for Senator" committee, which funded Conners' failed Republican run last November against Sen. Neil Breslin , D-Delmar, paid $1,450.43 to The Hermitage in Dover, Vt. on Nov. 30, 2004, for a "campaign committee conference."

A post-election campaign committee conference? In Vermont? Even stranger: A call to the inn found it hosted no "campaign conference" on Nov. 30. In fact, an employee who asked to remain anonymous said there were no guests that day.

There was, however, a guest from Albany named Mike Conners, who stayed over Thanksgiving, Nov. 24-26, the employee said. He rented two rooms and stayed in one with his wife, according to the employee. The other was occupied by the guest's daughter and her boyfriend.

Reached Thursday, Conners first said the trip was "for some of the kids who worked on the ads for the campaign." When pressed, he said his wife came, too, and "the kids" were his daughter, Molly Conners , who lobbies for Capitol Hill Management Services Inc., and her boyfriend, Kurt Lustgarten , who made Conners' TV ads and works for the state Department of Economic Development.

Conners called the trip "a working session to go over the campaign and how the media buys worked and didn't work." He said he paid the bill for Thanksgiving Day himself and charged the campaign for the other two days. The trip dates were inaccurately reported and the filing will be amended, he said.
[snip]

State Board of Elections spokesman Lee Daghlian said state law prohibits using campaign cash for personal use, and expenditures must be related in some fashion to either running for office or holding office. The board doesn't investigate financial filings unless it receives a complaint.

Some of the kids? Just happened to be his kids.

Did he ever amend the report?